In big Chinese cities – like it or not – bicycles are a vital ingredient to keep the cities moving. From pizza delivery, to painters, to garbage pickup, to cargo shipping, to transporting people – bicycles are everywhere in cities like Shanghai and Beijing.

Unfortunately, in smaller cities like Haikou, Hainan – where I am currently staying – bicycles have all but disappeared from everyday life. Scooters, e-bikes, motorcycles, public transit and automobiles have become the primary methods of transportation and doing business in Haikou.

Bicycles in China are regarded as the poor man’s vehicle – so it is no wonder people jumped on the opportunity to purchase an automobile, scooter or motorcycle as their incomes increased. After all, smaller cities like Haikou have more space to store and park them than bigger cities in China and you typically have to travel further to get to your destination.

(Not the mention the sweltering heat in this sub-tropical climate where a 5 minute walk will leave your clothes dripping with sweat).

It is these reasons, I reckon – that bikes are still so prominent in Shanghai – where space is very limited and everything is closer together and expensive. Bikes are efficient, cheap, and take up very little space on both the roads and for parking.

But Shanghai has a choice to make. As automobile usage continues to rise, do they take away space from bicycles and scooters to make room to support more automobiles? Or do they encourage people to continue using bicycles instead of cars?

It’s very obvious in Shanghai that cars take up too much space to be a sustainable solution for the future of the city. When traffic is at a halt, you can watch hundreds of scooters and bicycles pass by on the cycle tracks while the cars wait.

Cars do serve an important need in cities, but the capacity of automobiles that a city can support is much more limited than bikes, scooters and motorcycles.

If you have any doubts about the usefulness of bicycles in China, I have snapped hundreds of photos over the past 2 weeks to showcase real Chinese utility cycling. Here are my 30 favourite photos:

These e-bikes are used for delivering KFC chicken – a very popular chain here in China:

Love the photos. The trikes are especially cool. We’re starting to see bakfiets here, I think that’s the next thing we need to have imported. Imagine how useful those could be for someone living/working downtown. I totally want one.

http://www.blogger.com/profile/02743345135065452712 Claire

Great photos. Fridges beds and TVs…. oh my.

http://www.blogger.com/profile/04170152877824201743 boyan

Hahah ‘look who just purchased a big screen TV’!

Awesome article!

http://www.blogger.com/profile/16749740728099129703 Mikael

wonderful stuff! brilliant portrayal of real people using bicycles.

funny, that delivery man for KFC with the helmet is only wearing a helmet because he works for an American company…

http://www.blogger.com/profile/04454437680686627778 James D. Schwartz

Todd, it sounds like a good business idea to import these trike cargo bikes to North America. The only issue is that the space we have on our roads in Toronto is more limited than the 1 car lane width cycle tracks in China. Nevertheless, it would be manageable.

Mikael, it’s definitely because those are American companies. I’m sure it was recommended by the lawyers to prevent any liability on behalf of the corporation.

Having said that, those Pizza Hut and KFC delivery guys ride really really fast.. I’d guess those e-bikes easily get up to 40-50km/h, so if anything those corporations should require motorcycle helmets instead of foam-laced bicycle helmets.

http://www.blogger.com/profile/11187400454555241935 Sue ‘sans’ helmet

completely unimaginable here! brilliant!

Anonymous

Both bakfietsen and trikes are already being imported to North America. In fact, pretty much any bike shop can order Chinese-made trikes, some with e-assist, as either a special order or as part of their lineup. They look like a good idea but are awful to ride.

More importantly, why assume that we “need to have” these bikes imported”? The best bakfietsen are now being made in the US, specifically Oregon.

http://sevenleagueboots.wordpress.com/ Chris Rust

Nice article thanks. Just a minor nit-pick. You describe one bike photographed early on in the article as “Dutch Style” but the classic Flying Pigeon style Chinese bike has been around for over 100 years so it would be just as valid to call traditional bikes in the Netherlands “Chinese style”